I'm not going to pretend I'm any sort of expert in economics. But coming from the eyes of the uneducated, it looks to me like fixing, or at the very least helping the NZ economy, lies in jobs.

I'm sure it's easier said than done, but sometimes you have to do the hard things to actually fix a problem.

As anyone trying to look for a job at the moment will know, the market is scarce and unforgiving. So many people are being turned away for being under-qualified, for not having the right experience, even for being over-qualified. I've heard about jobs going at local supermarkets getting literally hundreds of applicants.

These people who are unable to get jobs have only one place to turn - the unemployment benefit.

I acknowledge that there are people who 'can't' find jobs, and people who 'won't' find jobs. That's another issue altogether.

This hits the economy two-fold: firstly, the money that has to come from the government to pay for these benefits, and secondly in money that isn't coming in to the government in taxes. Not to mention benefit payments are generally barely enough to survive (I haven't personally been on the benefit, but I know people who have).

For these reasons I believe a lot more time, money and effort should be invested into research considering how jobs could be created.

If we can increase the jobs available, this will let more New Zealanders get into the workforce - meaning less money being paid in benefits and more heading into the economy via taxes.

It's probably easier said than done, and there's no quick fix.

This, I think is the biggest downfall of this strategy - finding the funds and resources, and the party willing to look at the big picture.

We might not solve the problem today, tomorrow, next week, next year, but we can at least start the research, so hopefully the next generation isn't stuck with our debt and bad decisions.